Eyewitnesses Share Memories of Martin Luther King’s Most Famous Moment
Event at Goodwin Living featured guest speakers who attended the March on Washington
ALEXANDRIA, VA-Considering today’s threatening political and social climate, it’s fitting that in honor of Black History Month, the Concerned Citizens Network of Alexandria (CCNA) and Goodwin Living hosted a special event Jan. 30 to hear eyewitness accounts about the life of Martin Luther King Jr.
Established in 2009, the CCNA is a nonprofit organization, founded by executive director Col. (Ret.) James Paige, committed to equity in education, social justice, and health, especially in communities of color. Goodwin Living is a leader in helping people thrive and find purpose as they age.
A diverse audience that included local high school students heard first-hand accounts from panel members who had gathered on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. for King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered on August 28, 1963, at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. That day Dr. King spoke to over 250,000 people from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. In the crowd were Gwen Day-Fuller, a former teacher and CCNA Board Member, and former FBI Special Agent, Mark Raabe.
“There were people from all walks of life,” recalled Day-Fuller. “You could hear singing. You could see movie stars, Lena Horne and Harry Belafonte, political people, everyday people. It was just a wonderful experience.”
What brought her there that day? After reading Dr. King’s speeches, including “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”, Day-Fuller, like so many others, felt galvanized and recognized the significance of the moment and what it meant for the country as a whole.
“We were all there fighting for jobs, fighting to end racism and segregation,” she said. “Some of his speeches were soft and some were not. He was really telling us what we needed to do in our country.”
The confluence of events that led to the March on Washington still astounds Mark Raabe. “It was 1963, two months before the march was scheduled,” he remembered. “Martin Luther King was thrown in jail in Birmingham. Shortly after, Medgar Evers was murdered. It was also the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation.”
The leaders of the Civil Rights movement – King, Whitney Young, James Farmer, John Lewis, and Roy Wilkins – wanted to hold the march during that time frame. However, they had to get permission from the White House.
Initially, President John F. Kennedy and his brother Attorney General Robert Kennedy were opposed to the march, concerned that it would not be peaceful. According to the late John Lewis, the Kennedys suddenly changed their minds in favor of the march. It would be an event in which the government would participate. The march would begin at the Washington Monument and the crowd would gather at the Lincoln Memorial.
What was it like to be on duty during such a turbulent time in a crowd that large?
“The FBI presence that day was very small,” recalled Raabe . “I know of one other person who was there and we both had cameras and press passes. This was a focused moment in time with an objective and it was driven by peace and harmony. It was a joyous occasion but driven by a purpose. I never had a moment of feeling uncomfortable.”
“When Dr. King finished his speech,” Raabe added, “there was no way you could walk away from that experience without feeling change was going to come.”
Similarly inspired, Day-Fuller carries that hope with her today.
“I feel like every little bit that we do helps us,” she said. “I’m so hopeful that our young people see what has happened in the past and that they will want to help us all get where we want to go.”
